by David Dibattiste

Created on: July 03, 2008

The Constitution is an incredible document, loved deeply by nearly every American. We honor the aspects that make us proud, and deservedly so. Yet, the Constitution is not a document that is universally right, regardless of the nostalgic position it may hold in our eyes.
The Constitution originally permitted slavery, barred the vote from minorities and women, and counted slaves as three fifths of a person for census data. If you weren't 21 and male, you didn't have a say at all.

That made perfect sense in the culture from which it originated, well over two centuries ago. Today, some might consider it justification for invasion and installation of a new, free democracy. A fantastic government of the eighteenth century does not necessarily hold the same position in the new millennium.
It's widely recognized that the Constitution can be amended, changing the declarations, original text, or other amendments invalid. This is perhaps the most impressive element of all those who founded our nation ages ago had the wisdom to recognize that they cannot predict the world of the future, allowing the Constitution to be amended to fit in an evolving world.
There are many aspects of the Constitution that it seems we would never change, for we still hold them just as important as they were when the document was signed. It provides us the structure of our government, the methods by which we function, and even a great deal of our moral beliefs.
That, however, merely makes it an amazing document, prepared with excellent foresight. It does not, in any way, imply that the Constitution is always right. Our world changes, and our government must change with it or it will become a relic of the past, falling to an entirely new system. We clearly don't want that to happen either, so we'll likely amend away for years to come.
It is possible to view every modification made to the document as a part of the document's validity and universal accuracy, but that approach is flawed. For something to be always right, it must be right at all times. For an amendment to be confirmed and added, there must be something wrong with how it was prior to the amendment. This could be the lack of clear wording, granting suffrage to women, or simply changing something collectively decided to be wrong.
Clearly, the justification for an amendment is not compatible with the argument that the Constitution is always right. Considering many amendments have been made to the constitution in the past, with some even repealed, it seems reasonable to believe that the Constitution is not always right.
No document or person can ever be universally right, including our beloved Constitution and those who founded it. They had the wisdom to see it, and through amendments made it adaptable. Their wisdom and efforts should not be forgotten we should not treat the document they wrote in such a revered manner that we believe in it more than they did. The Constitution must change to survive, and that which can change can never be permanently perfect.

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